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Paedophile jailed after his victim secretly tapes his confession

A PAEDOPHILE was jailed for eight years yesterday after the girl he sexually abused secretly recorded his confession.

Adam Reeves – a deeply religious IT worker who lived in Bicester until he was charged – admitted seven counts of engaging in sexual activity with a child after the covert recording was passed to the police and played during his trial at Oxford Crown Court in January.

She had recorded him confessing after police told her they were dropping their investigation.

Reeves, 45, was told by a judge that his victim has had her life “destroyed” by his crimes, which he refused to admit until the evidence was overwhelming.

Now an officer from Thames Valley Police has commended the young woman for her bravery in obtaining the proof which led to her abuser’s conviction.

Yesterday, Judge Mary Jane Mowat said the complainant was determined to see Reeves prosecuted as she told the defendant that his victim “was not to be fobbed off”.

She added: “She organised a meeting with you in which she recorded you confessing what you had done and in a way apologising to her.”

But Judge Mowat said even when confronted with this recording by the police, Reeves continued to deny his crimes and told officers it was God he was saying sorry to.

The judge said she had “never seen a witness more distressed” than the complainant when she listened to the tape in court.

She said to Reeves: “You told her not to tell anyone and on one occasion you tried to bribe her into silence with a Burger King meal.

“What you were doing, you were doing for your own sexual gratification.”

She added that it was clear from the letters she had received that Reeves, now of Sharps Close, Waddesdon, Aylesbury, was a successful IT worker who was still highly regarded.

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Speaking after the hearing, investigating officer Detective Constable Natalie Thompson said: “While we would never encourage victims to put themselves at any risk, we commend the victim for her bravery in taping Reeves and his confession.

“It must have taken a great deal of courage for her to take action like this and we hope this sentence will go some way to helping her feel her actions enabled Reeves to be brought to justice.”

Reeves is now subject to a sexual offences prevention order banning unsupervised contact with anyone under 16 and he will be on the sex offenders’ register for the rest of his life.

Oxford Sexual Abuse and Rape Crisis Centre service manager Natalie Brook said: “We don’t comment on individual cases but generally, yes, it can be difficult to secure the evidence that is required for a conviction to be reached, which is partly why we see such low conviction rates in the UK.

“It is often one person’s word against another. What we would suggest to improve that is to ensure that when victims come forward to the police, for them to be supported in the right way and to take them seriously enough to do the proper investigation that the case deserves.”

Those who need support and advice can contact the Oxford Sexual Abuse and Rape Crisis Centre helpline on 0800 783 6294.